The quiet, cowboy town of Wickenburg could one day double its population if it annexes 2,186 acres slated for development.

The town of 6,500 has been working with property owner M3 Companies for about two years on an annexation plan that would add a master-planned community with up to 3,129 new housing units. The Yavapai County Board of Supervisors already has approved the development, which is on county land.

Developing that land and surrounding properties is essential for the town’s future, some officials say. Some residents believe taking over the area northwest of town would put the town at financial risk, an assertion town leaders say is not true.

“The question isn’t whether or not the development should be built, but whether or not it should be in Wickenburg,” Town Manager Josh Wright said.

“The choice the council will need to make is if they want to have control and a say in a development that’s a stone’s throw away.”

On Monday, Oct. 14, the town will send petitions to the eight landowners with property in the area targeted for annexation. A majority, or at least five owners, must sign in favor of annexation before the council can vote on the issue.

Two prominent council members have said they favor the annexation and no one else on the seven-member panel has openly opposed it. Councilwoman Royce Kardinal has recused herself from all public discussion because she had sold some of the land that could be annexed.

Attracting businesses

If the land becomes part of Wickenburg it will be the largest chunk of land ever annexed by the town and the decision would have major implications for the town’s future, Wright said.

The 3.4-square-mile area is near where U.S. 93 becomes two roads, U.S.93and Arizona 89, heading toward Congress.

The annexed land would place Wickenburg closer to the proposed but unfunded Interstate 11.

The interstate is supposed to become a major route from Phoenix to Las Vegas. Currently, drivers must pass through the heart of Wickenburg on their way to Nevada on U.S. 93. If the town does not annex the land, and the proposed interstate bypasses Wickenburg, it could devastate the community.

Yavapai County in 2007 approved MP3’s plans to build homes on the property.Homes in the first phase, called Wickenburg Ranch, are expected to be sold beginning in late 2014, according to Bill Brownlee, a partner at M3.

The area is also zoned for commercial development and the company will work to attract businesses such as a grocery store, Brownlee said.

M3 Companies is a Phoenix-based group that has developed real estate in Arizona, Colorado and Idaho since 1983. Some of its notable projects in Arizona include Prescott Lakes and Prescott American Ranch master-planned communities.

Vice Mayor Scott Stewart says the town has to grow or die.

He says it is crucial for the long-term life of a town to constantly attract new residents and entice younger residents to stay. A master-planned community might include retailers or other commercial developments that could provide jobs that the town desperately needs.

“As far as I’m concerned, it’s municipal suicide to have an unincorporated city next to your town when there is commercial zoning,” Stewart said.

New residents in new homes eventually could attract major retailers, which Mayor Jim Cook says would be a boon for Wickenburg. Residents often travel to Surprise to shop at stores such as Walmart or Home Depot.

“You can’t gamble on losing (sales) tax revenue for the town and if you wait, it never happens,” he said.

Although there is no guarantee that a big-box retailer will open a location at Wickenburg Ranch, having more residents in the area can only improve the town’s chances, Brownlee says, adding that the development will generate jobs regardless if shops open right away.

Hundreds of workers are needed when a developer builds a multimillion-dollar housing development, as well as the the roads and parks that go along with it, according to Brownlee.

Wickenburg leaders want to act now because it could be more difficult to annex the land after the proposed neighborhoods are built. The state requires 50 percent plus one of the property owners to be in favor of annexation before the town can act. Additionally, those property owners must control at least 50 percent of the land’s total assessed value.

Now, the town could meet that criteria if five landowners agree to annexation. If annexation were proposed after new residents purchase homes in the master-planned community, the town could need thousands of owners to approve the plan.

Plan critics

Although some Town Council members support annexation, some residents oppose it, including two of the eight property owners.

At the Oct. 7 public hearing at Town Hall, several people voiced concerns about the plan.

The town isn’t prepared to handle the financial stresses the project may bring, some said.

“I don’t think a lot of people are opposed to growth, but they worry about the taxes that could come with this project,” said David Brown, 68, a seven-year Wickenburg resident who attended the public hearing.

Brown is concerned that the town, which had to shutter its library because of budget cuts, can’t afford the public-safety costs associated with patrolling the annexed land.

The proposed plan says the annexed land would receive the same city services as the rest of Wickenburg, according to Brown. That could strain the 26-person Wickenburg Police Department as soon as the developer starts construction, because some building materials, such as copper, can be a target for theft.

Some residents also worried what could happen if the development is never built or only partially built. The town could be forced to foot the bill for infrastructure, such as roads or streetlights, leading up to the annexed land if the developer or new homeowners cannot pay the fees levied on their property.

A master-planned community with cookie-cutter homes doesn’t fit with the character of a town that prides itself on its Western heritage and custom homes, 29-year resident Donna Henry, 63, says.

“If we wanted to live in Surprise, we could live in Surprise,” she said.

Many of the criticisms about the plan’s potential cost are unfounded because the town will be protected by an agreement, called a community facilities district, that Cook says limits the town’s financial risk.

“The CFD put all the (financial) responsibilityon the landowner and if that falls through then it falls on the people who buy the property up there,” Cook said. “There’s no way we could lose money on this.”

The pre-annexation agreement drafted between the town and M3 Companies says that a “proportionate share” of the costs associated with the development of the property and infrastructure, such as roads and streetlights, would be paid for by the developer and other property owners. The town will not pay for infrastructure, the document says.

Wickenburg would be responsible for police, fire and trash services on the effective date of an annexation ordinance, if one is passed, the agreement says.

No action was taken at the public hearing Oct. 7.

M3, which requested the annexation, has up to a year to collect signatures. Gathering the five necessary signatures is expected to take about a week, says Community Development and Neighborhood Services Director Steve Boyle.

The Town Council is expected to vote on the annexation Monday, Nov. 4.

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